Amy Pleasant
The Romantic, acrylic on canvas, 24″ x 40″, 2016
In the Pink, acrylic on paper, 10″ x 10″, 2016
Time and Memory, acrylic on paper, 8″ x 10″, 2016
Beneath Time’s Wheel, acrylic on vellum*, 12″ x 12″, 2016
The Keepers of Time, acrylic on vellum, 12″ x 12″, 2016
She Was Her Mother’s Daughter, acrylic on canvas, 24″ x 30″, 2016
Sisters Likely, acrylic on canvas, 24″ x 30″, 2016
Love’s Risk, acrylic and oil on canvas, 18″ x 24″, 2016
* Vellum is a translucent non-porous paper.
Note on the Paintings
The paintings The Romantic, She Was Her Mother’s Daughter, Sisters Likely, and Love’s Risk are from the series A Woman’s Work; In the Pink is from the series Journey to Abstraction; and Time and Memory, Beneath Time’s Wheel, and The Keepers of Time are from the series Time and Memory. The paintings in A Woman’s Work, begun after the death of her mother and aunt, are Amy Pleasant’s homage to “the women whose shoulders we stand on”. In addition to serving as “a vehicle for remembrance, gratitude, and, in some cases, redemption and closure,” the series seeks to redefine notions of what traditionally has been regarded as “women’s work” by exploring the complexities and ambiguities of the vital role women play within the family.
Artist Statement
One eye sees, the other feels. ~ Artist Paul Klee
My early paintings reflect a high chroma palette, flat shapes, and patterns integrated with figures rooted in images from the past. My more recent work is less structured, aiming for more indirect communication to allow viewers the freedom of interpretation.
Embedded deeply in my practice and work as a visual artist is my belief that art in its most fundamental form is a personal expression that, ultimately, finds its rightful place through the engagement of the individual in particular and the community at large. It is within this wider context, I believe, that art is in its most powerful role. It not only reflects societal norms and transitions but also can help to bring about vital change in both the individual and the culture as a whole. It is through this prism that my work examines the common experience of family relationships as applied to life transitions, divided loyalties, the place of memory, and generational change.
About the Artist
Figurative and abstract painter Amy Pleasant attended Biola University in Southern California, earning a bachelor’s degree in cultural anthropology. Subsequently, she received a teaching certificate in art and English literature from California State University at Los Angeles. After spending a number of years in the field of education, she decided to attend the Art Institute of Seattle to study design. She supplemented her teaching salary by painting and doing freelance illustration. Ultimately, having discovered that painting is her true passion, she stopped teaching to study under Mark Kang O’Higgins in the Drawing and Painting Atelier at the Gage Academy of Art in Seattle, Washington.
Included in national exhibitions in Chicago, Illinois, and Brooklyn, New York, Amy Pleasant has had solo exhibitions in Seattle and Amsterdam, The Netherlands. In 2012, she was one of 12 artists featured nationally by the Women’s Caucus for Art. In addition, her work was chosen for the Chicago Billboard Project. She created the EarthART Project, an integrative approach to art through science for elementary school students, for Washington’s Shoreline School District, and served as its Artist in Residence from 2007 to 2013. In 2015, Amy Pleasant received GAP (Grants for Artist Projects) funding from the Artist Trust, a nonprofit that supports artists throughout Washington State. Her work can be found in personal and corporate collections throughout the Pacific Northwest.
A writer also, Amy Pleasant’s poetry and prose are found on her blog Life Meets Art. She is a member of the Huffington Post blogging community.
Amy Pleasant’s exhibition “TERRIBLE BEAUTY: under the canopy” can be seen at Gallery 110, Seattle, Washington, from June 2, 2016, through July 2, 2016.
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